Her brother chuckled. "I can't imagine my sister, who managed two-hundred-million dollars' worth of mutual funds, with a pair of knitting needles in her hands."
"Well, imagine it, because it's happening." She wondered whether he had something on his mind. "Any particular reason you want to see me?"
Rick didn't answer right away. "It's been a while since we talked," he said. "I was hoping we'd get a chance to catch up. That's all."
"That would be great. It doesn't sound as if tomorrow's going to work out. When are you in town next?" She heard pages flipping in the background as Rick checked his work schedule. "Why don't you come here for dinner?" she suggested.
"I'll be back next week. Does that suit you and Doug?" He gave her the date and Carol wrote it on the wall calendar. With the pencil still in her hand, she paused. While it wasn't unusual for her brother to call, he didn't often pursue the issue of their getting together.
"Is everything okay, Rick?" He'd been divorced for more than a year now and although he spoke about it matter-of-factly, even dismissively, Carol suspected the breakup had caused him a lot of pain. She didn't know the exact reasons Ellie had filed for divorce, but Carol figured it had to do with Rick's career. It couldn't be easy to maintain a relationship with a husband who was away from home so much. At one time Ellie had hinted he was unfaithful, but Carol refused to believe it. Her brother wouldn't cheat on his wife. He just wouldn't.
"Well...sort of okay, but I don't want to go into it now. There's nothing for you to worry about," he added, clearing his throat. "We'll have dinner next week and talk then."
"I'll look forward to it," Carol told him. "Have you seen Mom and Dad lately?" she asked.
"I was in Portland last weekend and they're fit as ever."
"Great."
Carol and her brother made polite conversation for a few more minutes. She frowned as she replaced the receiver, curious about Rick's problem, whatever it was.
"That was Rick?" Doug asked from the living room.
"We're having dinner with him next week."
"We haven't seen him in a while, have we?"
Carol wandered into the other room and sat on the arm of Doug's chair.
He glanced up at her. "What's wrong?"
She shook her head. "I wish I knew, but something's going on with my brother." Resting her arm along the back of the chair, Carol leaned down and kissed the top of Doug's head. "Promise you'll always love me," she whispered.
"I already did," he said and raised his left hand to show her his wedding ring. "I'm yours, whether you want me or not."
Carol relaxed against her husband's shoulder. "I don't think I've ever loved you more than I do at this moment."
"Those are words a husband likes to hear," he said, sliding his arm around her waist and pulling Carol into his lap. She nestled in his arms, grateful to her brother who'd introduced her to Doug, and to her husband for his love. Still, Rick's call bothered her and she couldn't shake the feeling that something was seriously wrong. He might tell her not to worry, but how could she help it?
CHAPTER 8
ALIX TOWNSEND
A lix regretted signing up for the knitting class, but it was too late now. As soon as she'd received her weekly paycheck, she'd returned to A Good Yarn and paid for the class. She'd acted impulsively; it was stupid to throw away good money on a useless knitting class. The more she thought about it, the more annoyed she felt. She'd gotten suckered by some childhood fantasy of the perfect mother. Well, Alix had a mother and she was far from perfect.
"John's here," Laurel whispered, stepping up behind Alix at the counter. Her roommate had been seeing one of their regular patrons for about six months now, but as far as Alix was concerned, the guy was a sleaze. He might be good-looking and wear suits, but she saw what kind of movies he rented and they all began with X. His favorites were the kinkiest of the lot.
Early on, John had let Alix know he was interested in her, but she didn't encourage him. Laurel, however, had been keen on him from the first and seemed to think the world revolved around him. Laurel was welcome to John Murray, used-car salesman, but Alix wanted to tell her friend she could do better. The problem, Alix